Central African Republic marks World Refugee Day

(New York: 21 June 2006): Over 500 people gathered in Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic (CAR), for a celebration of World Refugee Day. Hosted by the Government with support from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the event was attended by representatives of the refugee communities from 12 countries, government officials, diplomats, UN and non-governmental organisation (NGO) staff and others.
"We are grateful to this generous and hospitable Government for the welcome extended to tens of thousands of refugees over the years", said UNHCR Representative Bruno Geddo. The country currently hosts over 20,000 refugees and asylum-seekers. The Sudanese represent the largest group with 12,000, followed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (3,200), and Chad (1,300). Refugees are also here from Sierra Leone, Liberia, Angola, Rwanda, Burundi, and other African countries. "I hope peace will last in my country, so that we can soon return there", said 12-year-old refugee Marleine Betta from the Republic of the Congo, who won a prize in a drawing contest on the topic "Hope" - the theme of this year's World Refugee Day.

"The refugees in this country have shown that they are ready to organize themselves", Mr. Geddo added, thanking refugees for their courage and determination, and for their positive contributions to the host country. He also stressed the importance of education in enabling refugees to attain a greater degree of self-sufficiency, a precondition for any durable solutions.

While traditional Rwandan dance and Congolese music marked the celebration in Bangui, a far less festive mood now prevails for around 10,000 Sudanese refugees in the eastern town of Mboki. Their repatriation, which had started last February and has so far enabled 2,115 refugees to return, has currently been halted due to the closure of the border between CAR and Sudan. As they stopped farming last year because they expected to go home, they have no staple food left and are now eating wild roots. "The World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) need USD 670,000 to provide food, seeds and agricultural tools to Sudanese refugees in Mboki. If this does not happen soon, they will be highly vulnerable to malnutrition and disease during the rainy season", Mr. Geddo said at a press conference.

UNHCR concluded the repatriation of 1,374 Chadian refugees in 2005; while 3,221 were repatriated to the DRC between 2003 and 2006, and more are expected to follow after the coming elections. The return of Central Africans from southern Chad, however, could not be launched because of increasing insecurity in CAR's north, which forced another 8,000 persons into exile this year, bringing the total of CAR refugees in Chad to 50,000.

Another 50,000 Central Africans have become internally displaced since November 2005, and are today the largest group of concern to UNHCR in the country. Last March, most of these and other vulnerable people in the northern regions were highly vulnerable, according to the World Food Programme (WFP) representative in Bangui, Jean-Charles Dei. With the facilitation of UNHCR supported by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), an operation was launched and implemented by the Italian NGO COOPI, which delivered WFP's food aid and WHO's medicines. Meanwhile, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Holland delivered badly needed non-food items from UNICEF, and continued to provide health care in the region.

For further information, please contact:

Maurizio Giuliano, Public Information Officer, Office of the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, C.A.R.. - Email: giuliano@un.org Tel: +236-031825

Stephanie Bunker, Spokesperson, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), New York - Email: bunker@un.org Tel: +1-212-9175126

Elizabeth Byrs, Spokesperson, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Geneva - Email: byrs@un.org Tel: +41-22-9172653

For information related to UNHCR, please contact: Nicolas Rost, External Relations Officer, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), C.A.R. - Email: rost@unhcr.org Tel: +236-205471